Dogs killed our goats

Rex1718

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My dogs have been around goats before, never had an issue with them. A few days ago I come home to two dead goats.
My male goat broke the gate latch by ramming the gate. Not sure what happen one they got into the dogs yard.
A part of me says dogs will be dogs, they chase prey animals. But also concerned that they might have developed a taste for blood. They have always been great with my kids and I love my dogs, it’s hard trusting them right now. I never leave the dogs with my girls unattended, but it only takes a second for something to happen.
Any opinions. I don’t plan on getting anymore livestock. I’m just not sure if I should get rid of the dogs for the kids sake. I’ve never had any like this happen. Sure a dog fight once in a while, but nothing to serious.
 

mark1

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dogs know people from animals ..... how they react to animals has nothing whatsoever to do with how they react to people ....... i've raised kids and large dogs most all my life , i couldn't even begin to remember all the animals my dogs have killed , my kids have never been bitten or threatened by one of my dogs ....... i grew up in a house with working pitbulls and 8 kids , those dogs were animal killing machines , nobody ever got bitten ...... all dogs are born with a "taste for blood"

don't let your kids get in the middle of a dog fight ... ever
 
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Rex1718

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dogs know people from animals ..... how they react to animals has nothing whatsoever to do with how they react to people ....... i've raised kids and large dogs most all my life , i couldn't even begin to remember all the animals my dogs have killed , my kids have never been bitten or threatened by one of my dogs ....... i grew up in a house with working pitbulls and 8 kids , those dogs were animal killing machines , nobody ever got bitten ...... all dogs are born with a "taste for blood"
Thanks for the response.
 

ZEROPILOT

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Dogs are our pets. But there is still a good degree of their thousands of years of instinct still there.
I even see it in my 3 pound chihuahua.

Very often we'll get sad stories about how a family dog that had lived with a tortoise for a long time, one day attacked the tortoise.
It's not a bad dog.
It's just a dog being a dog.

I'm sorry about the death of your animals.
 

Rex1718

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I feel better about it now. I guess I’m just paranoid. A guy I worked with lost his son to a dog.
I’ve always had big dogs without any issues. And thinking about it, the dogs have helped me track deer and such, I guess it was just natural instinct to go after the goats.
 

TammyJ

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Well. I would now be very careful too about your dogs as you know what they are capable of. If your kids are small kids, don't go out and leave them with the large dogs, playing or otherwise. Some animal, goat, cat, or whatever, may come into their territority, a fight starts and your kids get into the middle of it and......??? It happens.
 

Yvonne G

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In my opinion, the goats invaded the dogs' territory, and, goats not understanding dog body language didn't move away when the dogs told them to.
 

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